These small crisp bread rolls with a crunchy crust and a soft tender crumb, also known as Weizenbrötchen, or Semmel in German, are the classic German hard rolls. They are eaten frequently for breakfast, or with cold cuts as lunch in Germany.
An overnight poolish starter lends a nuttier flavour to bread and the shiny brown crisp crust brought about by the steam created by placing a pot of hot water at the bottom of your oven. You can always freeze them and re-crisp in a 150C/300F oven for 10-12 minutes.

Weizenbrötchen - German Hard Rolls with Poolish

Combine together the poolish ingredients in a mixing bowl. Leave it, covered, at room temperature for 16-20 hours.

Mix the starter, bread flour, water and fresh yeast at low speed for 3 minutes, then increase the speed and mix for 5 more minutes. Add in salt, sugar, and olive oil and continue to knead for another 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and form into a round ball. Cover with a clean kitchen towel. Set aside for an hour. Stretch and fold the dough after 30 minutes. Knead the dough thoroughly and divide it into 5 large or 8 small portions. Shape each portion into an oval and place them on the parchment paper lined baking tray. Cover and prove for an hour.

Place a roasting tray at the bottom of the oven. Preheat the oven to 230C/450F. Score the rolls and place in the hot oven. Pour 1 cup of hot tap water into the roasting tray. Bake 20-25 minutes until they are nicely golden brown and crisp.

We spent a Christmas in Germany once and the food that always comes to mind first for me is their fabulous breakfasts. Your rolls brought back wonderful memories of Munich this morning Angie. I wish I had one of those German hard rolls for breakfast this morning.

Angie..I just saw these on Pinterest and I can't even begin to tell you how gorgeous they are AND how much I want a dozen or so! This makes me want to get back to Artisan bread baking again! I miss it, but haven't had the time to put the care it needs into it. Wishing you and yours a Happy New Year!

Wow, Angie - I'm so excited! I spent a summer in Germany and grew to love their little breads, called Brotchen. Yours look exactly like the ones I fell in love with, crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. Thanks so much for posting this!

They look like they came out of a professional bakery. I need to work on my scoring for some reason I can not get it right. Added this to my list to try from your site - as always another bread recipe :)Happy New Year Angie! To many breads in 2013 :)

Hi There, This post is looking great! It was a real delight to see and learn so much from your each and every post. Hope to see more of your creative endeavours in the new year. Wish you and your family a very Happy and Blessed New Year!!! Happy Holidays :) Love & Regards, Sonia !!!

@Pb yes, just 0.1g of fresh yeast. If you don't have an electrical spoon scale, which measures up to 0.1g, then just use the tip of a small pairing knife to take a very small piece from the block of fresh yeast.

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